


Nice to sweet you!

by mckvch (RaiseYourVoice)



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Neighbors, Artist Markus, Bad Puns, Baking, Flirting, Fluff and Humor, Getting Together, Idiots in Love, Kissing, Love Confessions, M/M, Social Media, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Valentine's Day, Valentine's Day Fluff, YouTuber Connor, socially awkward Connor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-23
Updated: 2019-02-14
Packaged: 2019-05-27 09:45:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,233
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15021935
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RaiseYourVoice/pseuds/mckvch
Summary: He had only ever seen Connor with a frown, no glasses and slicked back hair but now he was all-smiles, brown eyes sparkling at the camera from behind black-rimmed spectacles and his hair was a loose, curly mess that Markus suddenly felt the itch to dig his fingers into. Well, fuck.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [magnusisfabulous](https://archiveofourown.org/users/magnusisfabulous/gifts).
  * Translation into 中文 available: [Nice to sweet you!](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15282924) by [HGGoods](https://archiveofourown.org/users/HGGoods/pseuds/HGGoods), [mckvch (RaiseYourVoice)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/RaiseYourVoice/pseuds/mckvch)



> Okay, this one I'm a lot happier with than the other story I uploaded yesterday. I like the idea and it's way too much fun to write awkward/shy Connor.

Sometimes, on his days off, Markus just decided to spend hours watching various videos on YouTube, getting lost in this endless supply of entertainment and cringe. He never quite understood the logic behind the site’s suggested videos, though, because YouTube seemed to be very keen on getting him to watch the videos of this emotionless snob living next door. Markus still didn’t know how he had ended up living next to some kind of YouTube celebrity but he honestly couldn’t care less.

Sure, objectively speaking the guy was kind of pretty but he was also very rude—after moving in Markus had greeted the guy whenever they met in the hallway but he had given up on being polite since the other barely ever reacted.

Markus stretched out on the couch on Sunday morning, steaming cup of coffee in hand, a bowl of cereal on the coffee table and laptop balanced on his thighs while he ended up watching some ‘funny animal videos’ that mostly weren’t even that funny. A lot of them were kind of cute, admittedly, but he only snorted at a few of them.

It was when Markus had gotten up to get a new cup of coffee that he realised it probably hadn’t been a good idea to have the autoplay function activated because he came back into the living room to spot his neighbour’s face popping up on screen because YouTube clearly hated him and wanted to ruin his day.

‘Hello, my name is Connor and I’m the nerdy baker sent to you by my insatiable sweet tooth,’ was the opening line and Markus groaned at the stupidity of it but while his finger hovered over the spacebar to stop this horror, his hand froze in mid-air due to the shock of seeing his neighbour— _Connor_ , apparently—smile brightly at the camera from where he seemed to be standing in his kitchen.

‘A lot of you guys asked me about my favourite kind of dessert and to make a video about it so, here we are,’ the young man spread his arms a little and then reached up to nudge his glasses a little further up his nose and _hot damn_ did he look good with those. Markus had never seen Connor with glasses and he was slightly taken aback by the undeniable handsomeness he was currently faced with.

He had only ever seen Connor with a frown, no glasses and slicked back hair but now he was all-smiles, brown eyes sparkling at the camera from behind black-rimmed spectacles and his hair was a loose, curly mess that Markus suddenly felt the itch to dig his fingers into. Well, fuck.

‘So, there are a lot of really amazing desserts out there, as you know. It’s quite impossible to choose one favourite but I think I’ll have to go with Black Forest Cake. Or, as it is called in Germany: _Schwarzwalder Kirschtorte_.’

Markus groaned and hid his face in his hands because this guy was _adorable_. Why was he adorable?! Markus had preferred being mad about his stupid, rude neighbour but now he found himself unable to stop this damn video and he watched on in fascination as Connor started spreading out ingredients for making the cake while chattering on about how he had visited Germany two years ago with some guy named Hank and had immediately fallen in love with this dessert.

‘Also, while I use the proper recipe that contains cherry liquor, please feel free to skip the alcohol because not everyone enjoys the taste so feel free to adjust the recipe to your liking,’ Connor said after mixing the dry ingredients and started on the wet ones. ‘And dark chocolate is the one usually used, obviously you can choose a different kind as well. Though in my opinion, the dark chocolate is definitely the best fit but I love dark chocolate in general so I’m probably a little biased.’

Markus was already curled up on his couch again, fingers wrapped around his cup of coffee and just when he took a sip of it, Connor reached up to adjust his glasses and left a white streak of flour along the side of his nose. Markus almost choked on his coffee for no reason. He was honestly wondering if this really was his neighbour because this guy was _adorable_ and his cute personality only made him more gorgeous.

On one hand, Connor definitely knew his way around the kitchen, mixing the ingredients with practised ease, but there was also a hint of clumsiness in some of his movements that caused a sudden need in Markus to grab the other’s face and kiss him stupid. Now, that was certainly an unexpected development, to put it lightly…

The whole video went on for almost forty minutes and nevertheless, it was over way too quickly, with Markus groaning at the ending where Connor, of course, tasted the finished cake and some whipped cream got stuck to the soft curve of his Cupid’s bow. Markus cursed YouTube for dragging him into this whole new mess but didn’t stop the website when it simply started playing another one of Connor’s videos.

‘Hello, my name is Connor and I’m the nerdy baker sent to you by my insatiable sweet tooth,’ was the greeting once more and it seemed to be his catchphrase and while Markus had thought of it as stupid the first time, now he kind of had to smile at it and the serious expression Connor showed while delivering it.

‘Since Valentine’s Day is drawing closer, many of you asked me for advice on something easy to make for their partner and since I’m kind of a sucker for baking cute things, obviously, I’ll help you out with this one,’ Connor announced with a bright smile that would make the sun look pale in comparison.

Markus was really starting to get worried about his line of thoughts after only one video and he knew he should probably stop watching right now but he didn’t. He couldn’t.

‘I decided that heart-shaped cookies would be a little too plain and obvious but we’ll stick with the heart theme because, duh, Valentine’s Day,’ Connor continued with his introduction while his fingers fiddled absently with a bowl already set on the counter in front of him. His hair was a curly mess as in the video before, he was wearing his glasses again as well and a really silly pun shirt, clearly dressed for the occasion: the white shirt showed a slice of watermelon surrounded by the text _you’re one in a melon_.

Markus was this close to facepalming but still caught himself snorting in amusement because Connor was impossibly adorable. Nobody should be allowed to be adorable wearing such a shirt but his neighbour somehow pulled it off.

‘So, today we’re going to make a cake roll with lots of hearts. A big one inside and chocolate ones as a pattern for the exterior. Before I got into baking I always wondered how people managed such complicated looking things but it’s actually easy with a little bit of patience and it will definitely impress your lover.’ Connor smiled once again and then started gathering the ingredients on the counter in front of him.

‘As usual, you will find the recipe with suggestions for alternative ingredients down below,’ he added in between arranging everything and pointed down to where the video description could be found.

Markus might be an artist himself—playing the piano and painting being his two biggest hobbies—but he had admittedly never tried to do anything artsy with food. Watching Connor’s slender hands easily piping small chocolate hearts onto a piece of baking paper before pouring the pink-dyed cake batter onto it after the hearts had dried kind of made Markus want to try this as well.

Seeing a dollop of batter smeared against the fair skin of Connor’s index finger also made him want to lick it off but that was a different matter and problem altogether.

*******

About at least ten videos later, Markus was roughly interrupted from the newfound love of binge-watching Connor’s videos by the ringing of his phone. He was inclined to just ignore it but when he saw that Carl, his adoptive father, was the one calling he didn’t have the heart to not answer it. Markus quickly tapped the spacebar to pause the video and reached for his phone.

“Carl, hey. Is everything alright?” He knew Carl always rolled his eyes at him whenever Markus greeted him like this but he couldn’t help himself. Markus was constantly worried that the phone would ring someday to tell him something had happened to his dad—that the current caregiver had somehow fucked up or worse. He would never stop feeling bad about moving out of the mansion and into his own apartment, even though Carl had told him multiple times that he needed to get out and make his own experiences, not take care of an old man 24/7.

Markus had never minded helping Carl, though. Carl had basically saved him by adopting him and the least he could do was to give back a sliver of that by way of helping with all the everyday tasks Carl couldn’t manage by himself, seeing as he was bound to a wheelchair.

‘Markus, I’m fine. I’m just calling to hear how you’re doing and to make sure you’re actually relaxing for a change. I heard you’ve been working non-stop in the gallery the whole week,’ Carl's deep voice sounded through the phone, sounding fondly chiding.

“Yeah, well, I had to make sure your exhibition was set up properly,” Markus defended his once again ridiculous amount of overtime this week. He loved working at the gallery, especially during the times when Carl had a new exhibition ready and he could arrange his father’s works for the public.

‘You could really start to put a little more trust into your co-workers, Markus. There’s no need for you to personally place every item yourself whenever I have an exhibition,’ Carl replied and Markus could basically hear him rolling his eyes.

“It’s not that I don’t trust them. I just prefer to take care of your works myself.” Markus shrugged and smiled to himself. He knew he was being ridiculous but he respected and appreciated his dad’s art a whole lot, wishing that one day he would be able to come even close to this level of talent.

So far, Markus had only had a hand full of his work displayed in the gallery so far and that had mostly been due to his position of subsidiary manager in the gallery and the fact that he was the son of Carl Manfred. He wanted to make a name of his own and not use his father’s name as a stepping stone for his own career. He didn’t want to be like Leo, Carl’s biological son, notorious liar and drug-user who only ever showed up to visit his father whenever he needed money.

‘You’re being ridiculous,’ Carl sighed but barely managed to hide the amusement in his voice, ‘So, we’re still up for dinner today, right?’

“Of course we are. I’m looking forward to it,” Markus replied with an audible smile in his voice. They met up at least once every week, either for breakfast or dinner, and he wouldn’t miss it for the world.

*******

It was closing in on midnight when Markus finally came home from a long day of work and while he was incredibly tired, he also felt really amazing. It had been the opening night of Carl’s new exhibition and the public had been more than thrilled to see his father’s new work. There had been a tonne of reporters and snobby rich people, sure, but everything had gone smoothly and Markus was incredibly happy about the positive resonance in the gallery this evening.

He had accompanied Carl home, laughing at the old man’s grumpy remarks about the people not caring about art but only money and reputation. Markus had heard the monologue about staying true to himself even when he followed in Carl’s successful footsteps one day—there was never any doubt in Carl’s words about Markus failing at making a name for himself.

Markus yawned as he exited the elevator, too tired to take the stairs which he usually preferred over the lazy way up, and then he froze with one foot in the hallway when he almost bumped into another person that was just walking past from the direction of the staircase. Not only was he surprised to anyone else still being up at this hour on a regular weekday but, of course, it had to be none other than his neighbour. _The nerdy baker from YouTube_ , his sleepy brain supplied unhelpfully.

He was glad he hadn’t run into Connor during the past few days since Markus had basically spent his whole free time watching video after video on the other’s channel and...well...he clearly had a problem. Not even a week ago, Markus had been annoyed by this almost robotic seeming guy but after watching a view vlogs in between the baking videos he now knew that Connor wasn’t cold or rude at all, he was simply socially awkward and incapable of making a good first impression—his own words. Markus couldn’t deny that Connor was right about that.

“Good evening,” Markus heard himself greet the other young man before his brain even caught up with the fact that the words were forming at the tip of his tongue. He bit the inside of his cheek when Connor flinched and almost dropped his phone that he had been staring at, head whipping up with a picture-perfect _deer in headlights_ expression. Apparently, Markus wasn’t the only one not having expected to run into other people at this time of the night.

“Uhm, hi,” Connor replied very eloquently and usually, Markus would have thought of this reaction as rude again but knowing now that the other was crappy at unexpected social interactions, he actually noticed the slightest hint of almost-panic in the deep brown eyes.

Instead of lingering and maybe striking up a conversation—Markus might have hoped for that to happen—Connor just mumbled something that could’ve been interpreted as “I gotta go” and then almost fled down the corridor to disappear into his own apartment.

Markus stared after the other man, huffing out a soft laugh before flinching when the doors of the elevator attempted to close and only slid back open after hitting him in the shoulder. He shook his head, both about Connor being such a mess and himself getting distracted by the guy, before finally heading to his own home as well.

As soon as he opened the door, there was a soft meowing and the small kitten he had found in a dumpster behind the gallery earlier this week glanced up at him with round eyes and it’s two-coloured face. Carl had said something about it being fate that Markus had found this little furball since Markus had bi-coloured eyes—one blue, the other green—while the animal had a bi-coloured face—one half brown and the other black.

“Hey there, Simon,” he greeted the feline softly, pushing the door closed with the heel of his boot while bending down to scoop the kitten up in his hands. Simon purred happily and stretched up to him in order to brush his tiny, fluffy head against the underside of Markus’ chin.

After cuddling his new furry roommate for a few minutes, Markus sat the kitten down on the couch and headed for the bathroom for a quick shower. He felt like falling asleep right where he stood but just when he was about to enter his bedroom, he heard his phone chime with a notification on the coffee table and curiosity got the better of him.

**BakingLife started streaming**

Markus stared at the notification for a moment. No, he was going to go to bed as planned, not tap on that—

‘—nerdy baker sent to you by...the fact that I’m too wide awake to go to sleep already.’

“Why is this my life,” Markus muttered while gently nudging Simon aside before slumping into the soft cushions of his couch and starting up his laptop because if he was watching this, he could also do it on a slightly bigger screen than his phone.

‘I know it’s pretty late already and most of you won’t be able to watch for long or at all if you have proper jobs but I felt like talking to someone. It’s really nice to have such chill little streams and just talk to you guys every once in a while,’ Connor said with a low, soft voice because he probably didn’t want to disturb his neighbours by speaking too loudly.

‘So, I mentioned my hot neighbour in a previous stream already and I almost ran into him half an hour ago. Literally almost ran into him,’ Connor started telling a little story after having greeted a few people in the comments and Markus choked on nothing, slapping his palm against his chest while coughing.

 _Hot neighbour_???

‘Seriously, I don’t know why I’m too stupid to interact properly with people but the fact that this guy is so damn gorgeous really doesn’t help. It’s like my brain just short-circuits and all I can do is flee the scene,’ the young man explained with an adorable pouty expression while his fingers messed up his perfectly styled hair so a few curls were falling into his forehead. ‘I literally just took off and hid in my apartment, how pathetic is that? Yet here I am, able to articulate myself perfectly fine in front of a few hundred of people.’

Markus felt like his brain was short-circuiting as well now because _what the hell?!_ He had already read between the lines of other videos that Connor was definitely into guys, maybe even only into guys, but the information that the other thought of him as hot and gorgeous was somewhat baffling.

He glanced at the chat were he could see a lot of heart-emojis, “ahww” messages and comments along the lines of “don’t worry, everyone is awkward in front of their crush”. This was not making the situation any better and Markus frowned at his laptop, suddenly catching his hands clicking into the text box for the chat.

“Simon, I would be really thankful if you could stop me from doing something stupid,” Markus told his cat but the small feline had stretched out next to him, eyes closed and clearly dozing happily instead of paying attention to its owner's distress.

>> _Ever considered ‘hot neighbour’ might know about your channel and watch the stream?_

>> _Also, ‘hot neighbour’ is kind of shallow. The name’s Markus_

There were quite a few people typing in the chat so Markus didn’t expect his messages to be noticed but apparently a few other viewers decided to point him out to Connor who suddenly gaped at his own screen and even the dim light couldn’t hide the fact that his cheeks flushed a soft shade of pink.

 _Alright, this reaction alone had already been worth it_ , Markus decided while his lips curved up into a smirk.

‘This is just someone trolling me, right?’ Connor asked with wide eyes and Markus admittedly wanted to reach into the screen to pinch the guy’s cheeks—he was in over his head already and he hadn’t even properly spoken to the other man once. ‘There is no way this guy would watch my content.’

>> _And why is that?_

>> _You’re actually pretty cute when you’re not glaring and muttering monosyllabic greetings_

Markus laughed because he could spot the exact moment Connor read his messages and his lips stretched into a wider grin when the other man briefly hid his face in his hands, almost knocking the glasses off his face.

‘This better be someone messing with me because otherwise, I’m going to look for a new apartment right away,’ Connor decided with a suffering tone, clearly mortified and Markus suddenly got the idea that maybe he should just prove to Connor that this was not someone trying to prank him by pretending to be his neighbour.

Markus blamed his tired brain entirely for the idea but he got up from the couch nevertheless, slipping his keys into the pocket of the sweatpants he was wearing for the night and he actually padded across the hallway with bare feet because that was apparently who he was now.

Knocking at Connor’s door, Markus wondered if this decision was anywhere near smart but he figured that after everything the other had said about him, there was a good chance Connor would agree to go on a date with him, right? He at least had to try.

Markus had to knock multiple times until he heard soft footfalls coming closer to the door and when it opened, he had a first real-life encounter with the glasses-wearing, curly-haired version of his neighbour.

“Like I said, the name is Markus,” he chose as an opened, offering his hand with an innocent smile while he could basically watch the panic grow in the other’s pretty deer-eyes.

“Your doorbell nameplate says _Manfred_ ,” was Connor’s slightly odd reply and his voice sounded like it was about to give up on him, cracking the slightest bit.

“Because that’s my last name. Why would I only have my first name written there? That makes no sense,” Markus pointed out, barely keeping in the laughter that was threatening to bubble up in his throat when Connor’s cheeks flushed an even darker shade of pink.

“Right, yeah, that makes—that actually makes sense.”

Connor seemed so confident in his videos and now he was a shy, stammering mess and Markus felt awful for being delighted by that cuteness overload. Before Markus was able to give in to the urge to tease the other about that, Connor suddenly yelped under his breath and made a step forward, effectively bumping into Markus who automatically reached up to grab the other’s man’s hip to keep him from losing his balance completely.

“Oh my God, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to—” Connor’s words were cut off by a _rrowff_ and Markus had no idea how the other man had distracted him so completely that he had failed to notice the gigantic saint bernard in the other’s hallway that was apparently to blame for Connor stumbling into him.

Connor made an adorable embarrassed noise and almost jumped back from Markus, seemingly realising just now that he was still plastered against Markus’ front who honestly didn’t mind it the least bit. He had to force himself to let go of Connor’s hip but felt his lips tug into the hint of a pout.

“I didn’t know you have a dog,” Markus said, rather choosing this topic so Connor would hopefully calm down a little bit before his pretty face melted off due to the intense blushing.

“I don’t. It’s my dad’s,” the other man answered sheepishly, glowering at the big animal that looked more like a bear than a dog. “His name is Sumo.”

“Are you referring to the dog or your father?”

“The dog! My father isn’t called Sumo, his name is Hank,” Connor replied quickly and Markus huffed out a laugh because it was way too easy to make the other flail.

“It’s nice to meet you, Sumo,” Markus greeted the fluffy dog, offering his hand to the animal before softly scratching behind Sumo’s ear when the dog decided that he was okay. “Hank, you said? So you went to Germany with your father.”

Connor’s eyes widened once more and Markus should really ask him to stop that because he would end up just kissing this stupidly adorable man otherwise and he was pretty sure it might just break Connor completely if he did that out of the blue.

“You really watch my videos??”

“I knew for a while that you’re doing YouTube but I admittedly haven’t watched any of your videos until last weekend,” Markus answered honestly and now it was his turn to feel a little embarrassed, scratching the back of his head awkwardly before letting his arm drop back to his side with a small shrug. “I meant what I wrote in the comments, though, you _are_ pretty cute.”

That statement caused Connor to flush a deeper shade of pink once more and he stammered some gibberish before blurting out that the stream was still running.

“Alright, then don’t let me keep you from your fans. But I insist to take you out for coffee sometime soon!” Markus smirked and didn’t even wait for the other man to reply, simply turning on his heels and walking back to his own apartment.

Maybe there was something useful to YouTube’s odd choices when it came to suggested videos—not that Markus would admit that out loud, though!

 

 [](http://mckvch.tumblr.com/post/175173963602)


	2. Chapter 2

“You know, you don’t have to accompany me to my door every time. I can manage the five meters on my own,” Connor pointed out when the evening of their third date came to a close and while the young man had warmed up considerably to Markus, he was still endearingly shy and a little bit awkward.

“Of course I know that but a true gentleman always makes sure their date gets home okay, even if they live right next to each other,” he replied with a playful wink, delighted by the pink hue rising high in Connor’s cheeks once again. He just _loved_ to make the other man blush.

“You’re ridiculous,” Connor muttered but the fond smile playing around his fine shaped lips told Markus that he didn’t mind that in the least.

“But you still like me,” Markus said teasingly while he watched Connor fumble with his keys and his comment almost made the other drop said keys but Markus reacted quickly enough to catch them before they could fall to the ground. “I’ll have to admit that I have quite the difficult time to not just kiss you whenever you’re reacting like this but I don’t accidentally want to spook you by being too forward.”

He softly jingled the keys and grabbed Connor’s hand, placing the keys in his palm and brushing his fingertips against the warm skin. Markus' lips twitched into a gentle smile when he felt Connor shudder in reaction to the brief touch and he was surprised the other suddenly grabbed his hand when he was about to break the touch again.

“I’m not some skittish animal, you know? I’m not going to be _spooked_ ,” Connor complained with a pouty expression and Markus felt his lips twitch into the hint of a smirk while he took the smallest step closer, into the other’s personal space. Connor looked at him with his pretty doe eyes, cheeks pink but expression adorably determined with only an underlying hint of shyness.

“Are you sure about that?” Markus teased and leant even closer so the tips of their noses almost touched. He could see Connor’s pupils dilate the smallest bit and, really, how could anyone blame him for falling for this man? Connor was the prettiest and sweetest guy he had ever met.

The other man narrowed his eyes at Markus and was surely about to protest and confirm that, _yes, he was sure_ but didn’t get the chance to say anything at all. Markus had closed the remaining distance between them before Connor could do much more than part his lips a bit to speak, capturing that soft mouth in first, careful kiss.

Markus smiled into this first tentative contact when Connor gasped softly, followed by the sound of the keys hitting the floor with a clinking noise that neither of them was paying any attention to.

“Have a good night, Connor, and sleep well,” Markus breathed after breaking the way too short kiss again, smiling sweetly at the dazed-looking young man in front of him before turning around to head to his own apartment—after picking up the keys and handing them to Connor with a playful wink, of course.

*******

“You do realise that staring at someone while they’re sleeping is creepy, yeah?” Connor asked, his voice muffled by the pillow it was halfway turned into and the fact that he was pulling his left arm in front of his face only added to the effect.

“I’m not staring and it’s impossible to look anywhere else, honestly,” Markus answered with an amused smile and his heart was happily hammering away at the sight of Connor’s mussed up curls, the hint of pink high on his cheekbones from just having woken up and he knew the other’s beautiful brown eyes were still hazy from sleep.

It was only the second time Markus had stayed over and the first time they had shared Connor’s bed—just that, just literal sleeping after some lazy kisses and cuddles—and Markus had felt over the moon when he had woken up with this gorgeous young man in his arms. After using the restroom, Markus hadn’t quite been able to climb into bed again right away because the sight of a shirtless Connor stretched out on the bed, one arm curled around a pillow, had taken his breath away and kept him frozen standing in the middle of the room.

Markus had never been more happy about summertime and about finding out that Connor preferred sleeping shirtless when it was so hot because he loathed the feeling of a shirt clinging to his skin when he had been sweating during the night. Markus was very much in favour of this habit.

“Tell me you’re not actually taking a photo right now,” came the muffled protest and then Connor squinted at him from the gap between his upper and lower arm that was still hiding most of his face. He was probably going for an angry expression but the scratchy sound of his voice and bleary-eyed expression completely ruined the effect.

“Alright. I’m not taking a photo right now,” Markus replied easily, phone still raised in his hand and unabashedly pressing his thumb against the bottom of the screen a second time. He laughed when Connor narrowed his eyes at the second time the noise of the camera being used went off and Markus shrugged innocently.

“You didn’t say I’m not allowed to take a photo. Just that I’m supposed to tell you I’m not doing it,” he pointed out sweetly and almost dropped his phone when he suddenly got a face full of pillow. “Who knew you were such a child, Connor.”

“At least I’m not a creep watching other people sleep!” Connor shot back and was apparently a little more awake now, dropping his arm and grinning mischievously at Markus.

Now it was Markus’ turn to narrow his eyes at the other man before calmly picking the pillow off the ground and walking up to the bed, placing his phone on the nightstand. “I guess I’ll have to smother you, then, before you can tell people about my creepy tendencies.”

With that, Markus pretended to press the pillow into the other’s face but Connor smacked it right out of his hands with a noise of protest but he just took the opportunity to grab Connor’s wrists and pin them onto the mattress on either side of his head.

“It’s not like a need a pillow for that anyway,” Markus decided and saw the confusion forming in Connor’s eyes but before the other man could question his statement, Markus had already sealed his lips with a gentle kiss. Smothering Connor in kisses sounded like a much better plan than smothering him with a pillow!

*******

“You know,” Connor started thoughtfully while swinging his feet a little—how he managed that with his long legs was beyond Markus since the piano stool really wasn’t that tall—, “I think we should make a video together.”

“You mean I should join you in one of yours? Are you finally giving in to the pestering of your fans?” Markus asked while his fingers absently feathered across the keys of his beloved piano, only touching them with the pads of his fingers without pressing down, only brushing over the smooth surface.

“Pretty sure you were one of those pestering fans during the last live stream,” Connor pointed out with an amused smirk and Markus tilted his head to glance at the other man from the corner of his eyes.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about. I was having dinner with Carl when you had your last stream.”

“Right, so Carl was lying when he told me that you made him watch my stream?” Connor sounded way too smug now and Markus briefly considered just pushing him off the stool but that was a little too childish of a reaction—he also didn’t want to risk his lover getting hurt, obviously.

“When and why were you talking to Carl?”

“Oh, you know, he called me the other day and told me to be nice to you. I have no idea how he even got my number but he threat about running me over with his wheelchair if I broke your heart didn’t sound as ridiculous then as it does now,” Connor replied and now Markus’ head whipped around, staring at the other man with wide eyes.

“He did not!” He paused and thought for a moment. “Okay, I guess he did. That totally sounds like Carl.”

Connor laughed at that conclusion and Markus reverted to poke him into the side instead of knocking him off the stool, it was a good compromise and caused the other man to yelp adorably so that was an added plus.

“I must warn you, my dad will surely have such a talk with you as well but his will be along the lines of ‘I’ll shoot you if you hurt him’ so...The perks of having a cop for a father, I suppose.” Connor shrugged with a helpless little smile.

“You call that a _perk_?” Markus wondered, raising his eyebrows at the other man and this honestly made him question if he ever wanted to meet Connor’s father. He was already in love with the man but did he need to risk getting shot in order to prove that?

“It’s a blessing and a curse at the same time, depending on the situation.”

“Sounds like there are some stories I’d like to hear about sometime,” he chuckled at Connor’s expression that confirmed his assumption but then the other bumped their shoulders together and accidentally made him hit a few notes, cringing at the terrible sound it made.

“Now, enough of that. How about you finally prove that you actually know how to play this thing and don’t just have it here as a decorative item,” Connor said with a teasing grin, his thigh pressing up against Markus’ and the latter was wondering if this was on purpose or not. It was definitely a little distracting.

“Oh, I can play, just you wait,” Markus muttered, a little bit offended by the mere suggestion that he might own a piano without being able to play it. Connor made him sound like some snobbish prick and he could not have that!

Markus wriggled his fingers a little, stretching them as a warmup and maybe he took some more time for that than he usually would. Connor seemed quite fascinated by watching his hands so who was Markus to deny him that view?

When he had drawn the moment out enough, Markus finally settled into a straighter sitting-position and gingerly places his fingers against the keys, softly pressing down to elicit the first sound before he started playing for real. He almost missed Connor’s soft, awed gasp and only pressed his thigh a little more against the other’s while his focus remained on the song he was currently playing.

*******

“My name is Connor and I was sent to you by—“

“An excessive need for attention,” Markus interrupted because he was a horrible person and enjoyed teasing his lover. Also, Connor had basically forced him to join today’s recording so, really, it was his own fault!

“Oh, shut up! I’m trying to make my intro here and if you interrupt me once more I’m just going to gag you!” Connor threateningly pointed the whisk at him—at least Markus assumed it was supposed to be threatening—and glowered when he caught Markus’ muttered “Kinky”, hand twitching briefly as if he was actually considering to throw the whisk.

Instead of throwing things at Markus, Connor simply decided to re-start the recording and this time he was allowed to do his endearingly silly little intro.

“Today I also have a very special guest here with me since all of you asked me so nicely over the past few months. And by ask nicely I mean that 90% of my comments are you guys asking to finally see Markus,” Connor continued after his intro and now wriggled his fingers at Markus who was currently still off camera, feeling envious of Sumo who was currently stretched out in the hallway, head resting on his front paws. The dog was halfway inside the kitchen, chest lying on the tiles while his bottom half was sprawled out on the carpet of the hallway in an odd frog-like posture.

Markus wouldn’t mind switching positions with the canine right now—lying on the ground and taking a nap sounded amazing compared to attempting to bake on camera. Markus was a pretty good cook, sure, but baking had never been one of his strong suits. Which was why Connor had chosen a rather simple recipe, _thank you very much_.

He stepped forward to join Connor and looked at the camera, feeling terribly awkward for greeting the damn thing and he wondered how his boyfriend managed to do this almost daily without cringing at himself.

“Would you look at that. Seems like I’m not the awkward one for a change,” Connor said with way too much delight in his voice and beamed happily at Markus, who resisted the urge to glare at the other man, hyper-aware of the fact that all of this was being recorded.

“We’re talking to an object, not actual people,” Markus pointed out and could see the other was about to protest, probably with something along the lines of ‘my followers aren’t objects’ so he made a quick dismissive gesture. “You know what I mean.”

“Anyway. We should start. So, I planned for us to make caramel-cream filled cupcakes. They’re not that difficult to make and really damn good,” Connor now announced and sent Markus a soft smile before focussing back on the camera and then asking him to get the ingredients. Connor listens everything they needed for the cupcakes and Markus obediently went to collect all those items, placing them on the table in between them and the camera.

For a while, Markus just listened to Connor chatting with the camera, explaining the steps they needed to make the cupcakes and then followed along with what the other told him to do. Markus caught himself forgetting about the camera and watching Connor more than once.

Of course, he was the one who had to mix all the ingredients because why would Connor do the manual labour when he had a boyfriend to take care of it. Not that Markus actually minded because at least this way he was distracted from the fact that all of this would end up on the internet for the whole world to see.

It was weird, he worked in one of the best galleries of Detroit, always assisted with Carl’s exhibits and had presented a hand full of his own works to critics already but standing in front of a camera managed to make him slightly nervous and almost insecure. He didn’t mind talking in front of people but like this, there was no instant feedback, no facial expressions to read and know if what he was doing was well-received or not. It was oddly unnerving and more difficult than expected.

“Now we just have to pour the batter into the mould and put it into the oven,” Connor announced when the cupcake-batter was finally done and Markus was admittedly glad everything went well. Sure, this recipe was really easy and there wasn’t much that could have gone wrong but he had almost burnt a cake to a crisp a few years back, something like that left you with a certain trauma and the paranoia that it would happen again.

“Markus, would you—“ Connor paused, eyes flickering across his lover’s face with raised eyebrows and then snorted in amusement. “You have something on your face.”

 _Of course_.

Before Markus could even think of asking _where_ , his boyfriend already reached out and brushed his thumb against Markus’ temple, finger coming away with a smudge of cake batter. Connor wriggled his fingers in Markus’ face to tease him but his eyes widened when Markus suddenly grabbed his wrist to stop him from pulling away.

He grinned mischievously at his lover before tugging Connor’s hand closer, unblinkingly looking into the pretty brown doe-eyes before parting his lips to wrap them around the tip of Connor’s thumb, licking at the smudge of cupcake batter that was deliciously sweet on his tongue.

Markus could watch as his lover’s cheeks gained a bright pink colour, his gorgeous brown eyes wide and lips parted—he looked kind of sinfully beautiful like this and Markus couldn’t help but suck the others finger briefly before letting it slip from his mouth.

“You do realise we’re on camera?” Connor asked breathlessly and his hand was still raised mid-air even though Markus’ fingers only circled his writs lightly and it would have been very easy for him to break the contact.

“I’m sure by now you’re capable enough to cut this part out,” Markus replied easily, smirking at his lover while stepping a little bit closer, entering the other’s personal space. His hand slipped up to curl around Connor’s now, gently placing his boyfriend’s palm against his own collarbone, covering it with his own hand. “You could also just stop me, that’s an option as well.”

Connor blinked at him, slowly, as if he couldn’t comprehend the meaning of Markus’ words and that expression was enough to make Markus close the last bit of distance between them. His free hand cupped Connor’s face, gently tipping it up so their lips could slide together at a more comfortable angle and he smiled when the other man sighed against his mouth. Markus took advantage of the sigh right away, slipping his tongue into his lover’s mouth while letting go of Connor’s hand now to wrap his arm around the other man’s slender hip, pulling him closer.

In the end, when the video was finally recorded and the cupcakes were done, Connor had about half an hour to cut out in the middle of it because Markus had simply refused to keep the kiss short and had even turned the moment into a little bit of a makeout session. Connor’s complains about it were pretty half-hearted, though, so it was impossible for Markus to feel remotely bad about it.

*******

Markus smiled brightly when he saw Connor walking up to him and immediately reached out, heart skipping a beat when the other man grabbed his hand without hesitation, their fingers perfectly slotting together.

“This is really weird,” Connor started while softly bumping his shoulder against Markus’ while looking ahead at the painting on the wall in front of them.

“Why is that? Because some other people recognize how amazing your boyfriend is?” Markus asked teasingly and laughed when Connor glared at him but the pouty expression that went along with it ruined the effect. Markus leant closer to press a gentle kiss to his lover’s cheekbone like a silent apology for his teasing.

“No, I’d be offended if people didn’t realise that,” Connor said matter of factly, squeezing Markus’ hand while staring at the painting in front of them with a slightly tilted head, “but why did you have to choose this one?”

Markus, who had been watching the other man until now, followed Connor’s line of sight to the painting he had done months ago, using the photo he had taken that morning of his boyfriend in bed. Connor’s face wasn’t visible because his arm was hiding it and there was mostly just an unruly mop of dark curls and a lot of pale skin in between the sheets.

“I have to admit I was hesitant about sharing this one with the public but how can I deny others such an artwork? And I do have to say my painting is quite decent as well,” Markus said and laughed when he saw the pink crawling up in his lover’s cheeks, even though Connor tried to hide it behind his free hand.

“You’re the worst,” Connor muttered against his palm before dropping his hand and breathing out a long-suffering sigh, “I honestly don’t know why I put up with you. You’re way too cheesy.”

“Oh, come on, you love it, don’t deny it!”

“No, I love _you_ which is the only reason I tolerate so much of your bullshit.”

Markus would have complained about his heartfelt—if incredibly cheesy—compliment being called bullshit but the fact that Connor had just uttered these words for the first time made him forget how to breathe, let alone talk.

His silence caused Connor to turn around, looking at him with a confused little frown before his eyes widened and he probably realised what he had just said.

“That...that’s not how I planned on saying it for the first time,” Connor muttered sheepishly but before he was able to avert his gaze, Markus surprised both of them by suddenly surging forward and pressing his mouth against his boyfriend’s, kissing him with as much feeling as he could muster.

“I love you too, you know?” Markus breathed without properly detaching his lips from Connor’s, gently pressing in for another kiss and softly biting his lover’s bottom lip.

“Today’s youth, have you no shame?”

Markus broke the kiss now, his lips already tugging into a wide grin even before he had fully turned around to an amused looking Carl who raised his eyebrows at both of them. He chuckled when Connor hid his face against his shoulder, tugging his boyfriend as close as possible while still beaming at his adoptive father.

“Someone once told me to never be ashamed of who I am so...no, absolutely no shame here,” he grinned and Carl shook his head at him, laughing. Of course, it was Carl who had said these words to Markus and who had taught him so many of the things Markus believed in today, who had made him a much better man that he could have ever managed to become on his own.

All this was only thanks to Carl.

“Sounds like a very wise someone,” Carl commented with a fond smile. “Markus, you should get ready for your little speech now, you only have ten minutes until you have to be on the podium. Connor, would you keep me company?”

Markus had honestly forgotten about the time and nodded after a quick look at his phone, smiling when Connor agreed to keep Carl company. Connor pressed a sweet little kiss to Markus’ cheek, followed by a whispered “good luck”, and then he stepped to Carl, hands reaching out to push the wheelchair towards the next room where the small podium had been set up for every young artist exhibited here today to say a few words to their art and answer questions about it.

Markus sighed while watching the two people he loved most in this world, his heart almost bursting out of his chest with the amount of affection currently thrumming through his whole body. It was so amazing that he had this beautiful young man by his side now, allowed to call this gorgeous being his boyfriend and not only that, but Carl and Connor got along perfectly as well.

Markus really couldn’t ask for more and the fact that more of his art was now exhibited in the gallery was simply the cherry on top.

 

 [](http://mckvch.tumblr.com/post/175240088842)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The feedback to the first chapter was honestly kind of overwhelming. I didn't expect so many people to read and leave comments. Seriously, thank you all _so much_ and I hope this chapter will be as well-received :)
> 
> I'm sure there will be more from me about these two dorks in the future and until then, feel free to visit me on [Tumblr](http://mckvch.tumblr.com) or [Twitter](https://twitter.com/mckvch) ♥


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had to write something for Valentine's and then I got an idea that just fit into this story so here you have another chapter :)

‘Hello, my name is Connor and I’m the nerdy baker sent to you by my insatiable sweet tooth,’ Connor greeted the camera with a cheery smile and leant his elbows onto the countertop, fingertips toying with the mixing bowl set in front of him. ‘Since Valentine’s Day is upon us in a few days, I figured it’s time for one of those sappy videos again. I know, last year I promised that this year I’m gonna make a baking stream but back then I didn’t know there’d be someone to spend that day with so...you have to blame Markus for me not streaming!’

There was a noise of protest heard from off-screen, followed by a balled up piece of kitchen roll flying by that Connor just-so managed to dodge with a cheeky grin. ‘You missed, love.’

He started laughing after the bleeped ‘F@#! you’ and then tried to focus back on the task at hand, explaining the simple cupcake recipe he was showing today and offering ideas on different kinds of toppings and fillings while he started to mix the dry ingredients in the mixing bowl.

* * *

 **Icantbakeforshit** _3 hours ago_  
Why don’t you stream together? I’m sure everyone would love to see that!

> **Cyan Unicorn** _2 hours ago_  
>  Probably because they want to spend some quality time alone, not in front of the camera with hundreds of people watching, duh.
> 
> **Ben Dover** _2 hours ago_  
>  They could have some quality time in front of the camera. Doesn’t have to be in the kitchen if ya know what I mean  >:D
> 
> **Cyan Unicorn** _1 hour ago_  
>  **Ben Dover** seriously, dude?! You’re a pig!

**SugarAddict31** _6 hours ago_  
This should come with a warning due to tooth-rottingly adorable banter. Seriously, these two are #RelationshipGoals!!

> **anonymouse** _45 minutes ago_  
>  This! So much! I wish I had someone to spend V-Day with ;^;
> 
> **SugarAddict31** _32 minutes ago_  
>  **anonymouse** ahw, I’m sorry but I’m sure you will find someone :) I’m single as well but I’m going to bake these cupcakes for my friends and family (not that I have a choice, they insist on my baking ever since I started following Connor’s recipes lol)

**Cyan Unicorn** _2 days ago_  
Oh my god, these look so good!! Makes me want to reach into the screen and grab one. As usual, amazing job, Connor :D ♥

*******

‘So, I know a lot of you guys were disappointed about Connor not streaming on Valentine’s Day and even though definitely not sorry about being the reason for that, I figured I could share with you what I have planned for Valentine’s Day,’ Markus said without any greeting and adjusted the camera some more so part of his piano came into view, making it obvious that the camera was currently placed on top of the instrument.

‘Obviously, I’m not going to film on the day itself because that will be just for us or rather, that performance will be for Connor alone, _but_ you’re allowed to join a practice session,’ he added with a smile and stretched his fingers a little to warm them up for playing. ‘You guys already know I’m an artist, not just painting but music as well, and I figured why not go completely sappy and perform a song for him.’

Markus’ bicoloured eyes flickered to the side and there was the barest hint of pink settling on his cheeks now but his lips still tugged into a soft smile. ‘I know it’s terribly cheesy but I think such a present is worth much more than anything I could buy—not that there’s anything wrong with buying a present—and I dare say I’m quite good at this so...yeah. I guess I’ll start before this is getting even more awkward.’

He grinned sheepishly at the camera, never quite getting used to being in front of it, no matter how many times Connor had dragged him into one of his videos or convinced him to join one of his livestreams.

Markus’ hands settled on the keys of his piano and he took a calming breath before pressing the first keys, starting up a slow and gentle melody that was immediately recognisable as a version of John Legend’s _All of me_.

 _What would I do without your smart mouth_  
_Drawing me in, and you kicking me out_  
_Got my head spinning, no kidding, I can’t pin you down_  
_What’s going on in that beautiful mind_  
_I’m on your magical mystery ride_  
_And I’m so dizzy, don’t know what hit me, but I’ll be alright_  
_My head’s under water_  
_But I’m breathing fine_  
_You’re crazy and I’m out of my mind_

At first, Markus was clearly a little awkward about singing in front of the camera but it didn’t take too long for his voice to grow stronger and soften as he started to forget about filming himself, getting lost in the melody and feel of the song.

 _'Cause all of me_  
_Loves all of you_  
_Love your curves and all your edges_  
_All your perfect imperfections_  
_Give your all to me_  
_I’ll give my all to you_  
_You’re my end and my beginning_  
_Even when I lose I’m winning_  
_'Cause I give you all, all of me_  
_And you give me all, all of you_

His eyes were closed by now, fingers moving across the keys of the piano with the practised ease of someone who had played the song quite a few times already.

* * *

 **cerealkiller** _25 minutes ago_  
Why are these two so sickeningly adorable? God. This is too much for my poor heart…

 **anonymouse** _6 hours ago_  
You raise the expectations for my future boyfriend to an impossible level, I hope you know that! Love your voice and this is the cheesiest, most adorable valentine’s present ever.

 **PastaPrince** _3 minutes ago_  
I hope Connor is okay and didn’t die of a heart-attack or melt into a puddle because of this. Plus, I’m still here wondering how you two are even real.  
Amazing cover, by the way. I love your take on the song and your voice is absolutely perfect for it! I hope you decide to upload videos more often from now on :)

*******

“Have I told you that you are absolutely ridiculous?”

“I’m sure you mentioned it before,” Connor replied with a chuckle while sinking into the comfortable warm water, his back resting against Markus’ chest while the foam rustled with the movement, causing the rose petals on top of it to dance in the warm glow of the candles that were set up all around the bathtub. “Plus, you’re not allowed to lecture me on being overly cheesy, sir!”

Markus couldn’t help but laugh at that, his arms sneaking around his lover’s slim body while hiding his face in the crook of the other man’s neck breathing in the scent that was unmistakeably _Connor_. “Touché.”

“I’m expecting to be serenaded more often from now on, I hope you’re aware of that,” Connor added and even from this angle, Markus caught the smirk tugging at the corner of his lover’s mouth.

“I can think of worse things,” Markus replied easily and brushed his fingertips against the soft skin of his lover’s stomach, chuckling when the other man twitched a little because he touched a ticklish spot. He repeated to touch the said spot on purpose now and pressed an apologetic kiss to the nape of Connor’s neck when the other softly slapped his hand to get him to stop being a tease.

“I’m glad you think there are worse things than being a good boyfriend.”

“Oh? So I would be a bad boyfriend if I didn’t want to serenade you once in a while? You have never serenaded me so far,” Markus replied teasingly and laughed again when he heard Connor huff out a breath in fake annoyance.

“Since you can sing and also like to sing, yeah. I, on the other hand, would be a terrible boyfriend if I did serenade you because that would just be cruel.”

“I’m sure it’s not that bad,” he chuckled and Markus would be lying if he said he wasn’t curious about knowing what Connor might sound like if he sang but he also knew that wasn’t his lover’s thing. Connor was creative when it came to baking and creating delicious and beautiful things with food while Markus was the artistic one with paint and music.

“It is, trust me. Plus, I might not be serenading you but I pamper you with amazing food,” Connor said, smiling, and reached for the tray that was placed on the tiled surface surrounding the tub, picking up one of the two glasses that were filled with whipped cream, chocolate pudding and some berries on top. Of course, Connor had made some sweet dessert for Valentine’s day to add to the romantic atmosphere. There was also a bottle of sparkling wine and two wine glasses on the tray because his lover was a sap like that. And because they both loved a good wine when they spend some romantic, cosy time together.

Instead of handing the dessert to Markus, probably knowing that his boyfriend would be rather unwilling to let go of him, Connor scooped up some of its content with a spoon and held it out over his shoulder to feed his lover.

Markus hummed appreciatively and obediently opened his mouth to allow the other man to feed him. He hummed again when the rich, sweet taste of chocolate and whipped cream hit his tongue, mixed with the slight sourness of the berries. It was such a simple dessert but Connor managed to even make chocolate pudding into something special.

“Pretty sure I gained a few pounds since we started dating. You should stop making such delicious sugary treats,” Markus mumbled but knew he didn’t seem too convincing as he placed his chin on top of Connor’s shoulder to welcome another spoonful of dessert.

“Nobody forced you to eat any of it,” Connor pointed out with an audible grin but still offered another spoon of dessert afterwards to contrast his words.

“True but I bet you would pout if I refused to eat the things you make so...there really isn’t much of a choice.”

“I do not pout! Plus, you could just eat a little bit of my baking to try it but you always end up eating most of it so don’t put the blame on me if you gain weight. You’re the one with the bigger sweet tooth here,” Connor replied with a snort and Markus couldn’t exactly argue with that. It was the reason he had gotten back into the habit of working out more often because he absolutely _loved_ everything Connor baked and he’d be devastated to give up on eating these things in order to keep his weight.

“Or you could make the food less delicious.”

“You’re such a child sometimes,” Connor laughed and ate the next spoonful of pudding with an almost obscene noise that definitely made Markus thing of something entirely else than food. The fact that some of the pudding dripped onto Connor’s shoulder the next time he held the spoon out to Markus certainly didn’t help his mind ending up in the gutter either.

“And you can be entertainingly clumsy,” he said, not missing another beat before licking the dollop of chocolate pudding off his lover’s warm skin before it was able to slip down to Connor’s collarbone and drip into the bathwater.

Markus smiled when the other man shuddered in his embrace, goosebumps forming against the tip of his tongue and he pressed a feathery kiss to it before licking his lips with a smirk. “This really is the best pudding I’ve ever tasted.”

“Of course it is,” Connor snorted in amusement and ate another spoonful of the said pudding, his breath hitching a little when Markus cheekily sucked on the patch of skin that he had just cleaned off the sweet dessert. He set the only half-empty glass aside again in order to twist his upper body and look at Markus with a raised eyebrow and amusement dancing across his face that was slightly flushed from the warm water.

“What, no more pudding?” Markus asked, teasingly disappointed but then he laughed when his boyfriend’s mouth pressed against his. His lips opened up without being prompted to and the sweet turned literally sweet because he could still taste the chocolate on Connor’s tongue when it tangled together with his.

“Happy Valentine’s Day, you dork,” Connor mumbled into the kiss, softly biting down on Markus’ bottom lips who groaned softly and teasingly brushed his fingers over his lover’s lower abdomen.

“Happy Valentine’s to you too, love,” Markus basically purred his reply and stole another kiss from his boyfriend’s soft mouth, his fingertips now following the line of coarse hair from Connor's navel downwards, playfully scratching the sensitive skin and grinning at the full-body shudder he received in return.

 

 [](http://mckvch.tumblr.com/post/182807672587)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Valentine's Day to all of you lovelies ♥
> 
> Also, yeah, the chronological order in this is probably a little odd. Obviously, Markus posted the video _after_ V-Day but I figured since he recorded it beforehand I place it there and I wanted to close the chapter with those two being disgustingly adorable :D


End file.
